Saturn's electrostatic discharges - could lightning be the cause

Conference · Sun May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1983 · Icarus; (United States)

OSTI ID:6532655

Burns, J A; Showalter, M R; Cuzzi, J N

It is proposed that Saturn's electrostatic discharges (SED) might be generated in the planet's equatorial atmosphere, perhaps as lightning from a storm system. The 10-h-10-min periodicity of the signal envelope duplicates that of Saturn's equatorial jet. The rings shield the atmosphere from solar EUV photons, and thereby substantially reduce the local ionospheric cutoff frequency to allow low-frequency SED to leak out. Many of the unusual properties of SED could be explained in terms of changes in the storm system, the relative spacecraft position in the beaming pattern of the source, local refraction of the signal by the highly disturbed ionosphere, and the influence of the ring particles on the highest frequency component of SED. A comparison of SED with planetary lightning on other planets shows that the two are similar in general character and some time behavior the power output of SED may be higher than most planetary lightning, but that is unclear because of uncertainties in the measurements and variations in the signal's spectrum. It is suggested that lightning could be a viable source for SED and that exotic ring mechanisms are not necessarily required. 52 references.

• Research Organization: NASA, Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
• OSTI ID: 6532655
• Report Number(s): CONF-8205211-
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Icarus; (United States) Journal Volume: 54
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640107* -- Astrophysics & Cosmology-- Planetary Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ATMOSPHERES
ELECTRIC DISCHARGES
LIGHTNING
PLANETARY ATMOSPHERES
PLANETS
RINGS
SATURN PLANET
SOLAR FLUX